Paul T Davies reviews Sing River at the Pleasance Courtyard as part of the Edinburgh Fringe.
Sing, River
Pleasance Courtyard, Edinburgh Fringe
3 Stars
Book Tickets
Book Tickets
Fusing folk music and the tradition of songs about rivers with a gay man’s journey, the play deals with memory, how we shape it, hide it, and try to bury difficult memories in the river bed of experience. Written and performed by Nathan Jones, the show has a strong element of research, but is played mostly on one level and could do with more variation and tone.
Jones has a good voice, both sung and spoken, and the music by Faye James is pleasant and connected to the narrative. It’s not how I would class Folk, but it adds to the atmosphere well. As the circumstances of abuse begin to be revealed I felt there needed to be more rage, it all feels a bit polite.
However, I would have liked to have seen the piece performed outdoors, connected more to the nature that is in so many of the lines. There is more potential here.
